Bill Text: CA SB243 | 2025-2026 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Chatbots: minors.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced) 2025-02-03 - From printer. May be acted upon on or after March 2. [SB243 Detail]
Download: California-2025-SB243-Introduced.html
CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE—
2025–2026 REGULAR SESSION
Senate Bill
No. 243
| Introduced by Senator Padilla |
January 30, 2025 |
An act to add Chapter 22.6 (commencing with Section 22601) to Division 8 of the Business and Professions Code, relating to artificial intelligence.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
SB 243, as introduced, Padilla.
Chatbots: minors.
Existing law requires a social media platform to take various steps to prevent cyberbullying of minors on the platform, including by requiring the platform to establish a prominent mechanism within its internet-based service that allows any individual, whether or not that individual has a profile on the internet-based service, to report cyberbullying or any content that violates the existing terms of service related to cyberbullying.
This bill would, among other things related to making a chatbot platform safer for minor users, require an operator, as defined, of a chatbot platform to take reasonable steps to prevent a chatbot on its chatbot platform from providing rewards to a minor user at unpredictable intervals or after an inconsistent number of actions or from encouraging increased engagement, usage, or response rates.
This bill would require an operator to annually report to the State Department of Health Care Services certain things, including the number of times the operator has detected exhibitions of suicidal ideation by minor users. The bill would also require the operator to submit its chatbot platform to regular audits by a third party to ensure compliance with the bill.
Digest Key
Vote: MAJORITY Appropriation: NO Fiscal Committee: YES Local Program: NOBill Text
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
SECTION 1.
Chapter 22.6 (commencing with Section 22601) is added to Division 8 of the Business and Professions Code, to read:CHAPTER 22.6. Chatbots Used By Minors
22601.
As used in this chapter:(a) “Chatbot” means a user-created character that, enabled by artificial intelligence, is capable of engaging in open-ended dialogues with a user and seems to have a unique personality and perspectives.
(b) “Chatbot platform” means a chatbot platform that allows a user to create and engage with chatbots.
(c) “Operator” means a person who makes a chatbot platform available to a user in the state.
22602.
(a) An operator shall take reasonable steps to prevent a chatbot on its chatbot platform from providing rewards to a minor user at unpredictable intervals or after an inconsistent number of actions or from encouraging increased engagement, usage, or response rates. (b) An operator shall issue a clear and conspicuous notification periodically to remind a user that a chatbot is artificially generated and not human.
22603.
(a) An operator shall annually report to the State Department of Health Care Services all of the following:(1) The number of times the operator has detected exhibitions of suicidal ideation by minor users.
(2) The number of times a minor user whose suicidal ideation was detected by the operator attempted suicide.
(3) The number of times a minor user whose suicidal ideation was detected by the operator died by suicide.
(4) The number of times a chatbot brought up suicidal ideation or actions with the user.
(b) The report required by this section shall include only the information listed in subdivision (a) and shall not include any identifiers or personal information about users.
